Sympathy

I lay in sorrow, deep distressed;

My grief a proud man heard;

His looks were cold, he gave me gold,

But not a kindly word.

My sorrow passed I paid him back

The gold he gave to me;

Then stood erect and spoke my thanks

And blessed his charity.

I lay in want, grief, and pain;

A poor man passed my way;

He bound my head, he gave me bread,

He watched me night and day.

How shall I pay him back again

For all he did to me ?

Oh, gold is great, but greater far

Is heavenly sympathy.

Charles Mackay

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,

I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

W.B. Yeats

Question Passage

Patrick couldn't believe it. The most important day of his life so far; the day he had been waiting for had finally arrived! He was so excited to show the coaches how hard he had been working on his pitching. He just knew he would make the team this year. Looking at the clock, Patrick realized he was running late. "By, Mom," he yelled as he scrambled out of the house. Backing down the driveway, he saw his mom run out of the house, and it looked like she was trying to get his attention. he didn't have time to wait, so he drove off.

Although the school was only five minutes away, the drive felt like an eternity. Two red lights later, Patrick screeched into the parking lot, slammed the car into park, and ran around to the trunk to get his bat bag. It wasn't there. Every piece of equipment he needed to prove himself to the coaches this year was in that bag.

Questions Passage

It had been a year since Lauren had seen Bailey. Bailey's family had moved to Qatar leaving Lauren to face the world without her best friend. Anxiously, Lauren waited at the arrival gate hoping to glimpse a peak at her childhood friend. She knew after eleven hours in the air, Bailey would be exhausted, but she could hardly wait to catch up. Moments later, the doors to the gate flung open, and there she was, her best friend, Bailey.